Lisejniky v alpinskem pasmu Krkonos (inventarizacni pruzkum a vegetacni monitoring v ramci mezinarodniho projektu GLORIA)/Lichens of the alpine belt in the Krkonose Mts (floristical survey and vegetation monitoring within the scope of an international project GLORIA)

The composition of the vegetation was examined in the alpine zone of chosen five summits in the Krkonose Mts (the Giant Mts) using methodology of the project GLORIA (the Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments) during years 2008 and 2009. The studied summits were the Lucni hora Mt, the Maly Sisak Mt, the Smogornja Mt, the Studnicni hora Mt and the Vysoke Kolo Mt. The cover of lichens and vascular plants was examined in 16 plots (with 4 squares 1 1 m) on each summit. Four clusters of quadrates (each with four permanent plots) were placed in precise distance from the highest point of the summit in four main compass directions. We found 95 lichen species in total 80 plots, two of which are critically endangered (Stereocaulon alpinum and Umbilicaria torrefacta) and 17 species are vulnerable. About 25 % of the recorded species prefer high montane and alpine altitudinal zones. The highest number of endangered or vulnerable species was found on the Lucni hora Mt, where the lichen associations differed remarkably in comparison to other summits. The reason for such phenomena is not clear but it can be partly due to a large cover of scree. On the summits of the Vysoke Kolo Mt and the Maly Sisak Mt we found three highly remarkable lichen species: Arctoparmelia centrifuga (L.) Hale, Flavocetraria cucullata (Bellardi) Kaernefelt et A. Thell and Immersaria athroocarpa (Ach.) Rambold et Pietschm. These lichens are extremely rare in the Czech Republic and they were found again after many decades after their first collecting in the Krkonose Mts. There was found a certain positive relationship between the status of endangering and its distribution in the highest altitudinal parts. The total number of species of lichens and vascular plants was mainly controlled by the local characteristics of observed plots, e.g. by total cover of vascular plants and total cover of litter. The lichen species composition differed considerably within studied summits and the numbers of lichen species were strongly negatively correlated by the number of species of vascular plants. The effect of slope orientation on lichens characteristics was not confirmed.